Posted By Joanne Ostrow On July 30, 2013 @ 4:04 pm In Television & Media News | No Comments

The pioneers of the science of human sexuality, William Masters and Virginia Johnson, are the subjects of a stunning, adult Showtime series, “Masters of Sex,” with Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan in the key roles. Their research starting in the late 1950s altered perceptions of the nature and physiology of sex. Judging by the first two hours, some will find the series titillating, most will be impressed by the thoughtful, mature aspects of the piece.

The topic is a perfect fit for cable TV; it would never be broadcast on advertiser-supported TV. The first season, 12 episodes, premieres Sept. 29.

The producers stuck to the facts as presented in Thomas Maier’s book of the same title. Unlike Alfred Kinsey’s interview-based work at the time, Master and Johnson brought subjects into a lab and measured sexual response. She was the adventurous one, he was very buttoned down.

“He’s sort of a mystery to himself,” Sheen said of his character, Masters. It’s more a “locked down desire to keep control” than prudishness, he said.

The same problems of intimacy persist today no matter how much we know about sex, Sheen said, “which is what the series is ultimately about.”

Johnson was “by far the most layered and toughest woman she’s played, Caplan said. “She is in every beat of every scene a contradiction.” A secretary, a partner. Sexually adventurous but a single mother of two with tremendous domestic responsibilities. A friend to Masters’ wife but also the other woman.

There are moments of levity, Caplan says, citing the moment when the laboratory’s fake phallus is posed in front of Beau Bridges’ face. (Bridges plays the provost of the teaching hospital.)

“I was embarrassed, this was my first sex scene,” said Teddy Sears (“American Horror Story”). He’s wired and naked for the scenes in the lab. “It gets decidedly unsexy after a while.”

“We want the best actors to feel comfortable coming in and exploring this subject matter with us,” Sheen said. “We aren’t just tee-hee-heeing about it.”

The cast and crew had hoped to meet Virginia Johnson, who died last week, but were unsuccessful. “She really bared her soul in that book,” said executive producer Michelle Ashford.

The production did after a time, wear away the sensitivites around the subject. “After a while of seeing so many people so naked, you just get used to it,” Sheen said.

And what did Caplan learn? “People’s masturbatory techniques are a lot like snowflakes.”

Article printed from Ostrow Off The Record: http://blogs.denverpost.com/ostrow